The Nunn Fellows participated in a day-long series of briefings on the mission and activities of the CDC. The morning sessions focused on the response to the Ebola Outbreak in West Africa; on the Global Health Security Agenda, an international partnership framework designed to “prevent, rapidly detect, and effectively respond to infectious disease threats” to national and international security; and on the role of the CDC Emergency Operations Center. The discussion of the Emergency Operations Center included a demonstration of Red Sky – a cloud-based dashboard program that allows analysts and decision makers to access real-time information on public health events on an interactive map. In the afternoon, the Nunn Fellows were briefed on the CDC’s role in the ongoing global campaign to eradicate polio and on the CDC’s approach to public health policy. The visit was facilitated by Dr. Mim Kelly, from the Office of the Associate Director for Science at the CDC.  

Originally funded by the MacArthur Foundation’s Science, Technology, and Security Initiative, the Sam Nunn Security Program seeks to advance the role of scientific and technical advice on issues of international security through education, research, outreach activities, and participation in the policy advisement process. The SNSP is committed to educating scientists and engineers about national security issues and providing the analytical tools they need to interact with the policy community. It selects young and mid-career scientists and engineers for intensive year-long training in research approaches and policy formulation methods for addressing national and international security issues. It is currently led by Nunn School Professor Margaret E. Kosal.